theorion.com | Wednesday, October 28, 2015 | Vol. 75, Issue 10 | First copy free, additional copies 50¢
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Chico State receives 3 of 5 stars for gender inclusivity Elizabeth Castillo
Staff Writer This semester, Chico State hopes to improve LGBT resources on campus after receiving three out of five stars on a national ranking. The Campus Pride Index evaluates colleges based on a variety of LGBT inclusion factors. Some members of the LGBT communities on campus experience issues with inclusiveness on a daily basis. Chico State needs to improve its score by adding more LGBT resources on campus, said Kory Masen, trans program development intern for the Gender and Sexuality Equity Center.
University Farm partners with Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, who provides cattle to the farm where students care for and feed them until they are grown. of advancement. “I think our farm stands out because it is one unified farm where everything Staff Writer works together.” By collaborating with local businesses and reDeforest said the 800-acre campus farm is difducing waste on both sides, the University Farm ferent because it’s all together and not spread has been named the most out across campus like sustainable in the nation. other universities, such as I think our farm The ranking for college Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. stands out befarms works on a point The university farm has cause it is one system and takes things 200 acres of orchards, an unified farm like acreage and number organic dairy farm and a where everything meat laboratory that is inof crops into considerworks together. ation. spected by the USDA. “I think it’s a nice recAlthough rankings like Srah DeForest, College ognition of what we’re this come out on a regular of Agriculture director of doing here at Chico State basis, they aren’t always advancement and the significance that reliable, DeForest said. sustainability plays on “The reason we looked our campus and in agriculture in general,” said at this one skeptically when we first saw it was Sarah DeForest, College of Agriculture director because there was another ranking that came Austin Herbaugh
out within the past year,” she said, referring to another website that said Butte College has a dairy farm. “They don’t have a dairy, we have a dairy. So it wasn’t accurate information.” She said they checked the accuracy of the most recent rating and how the ranking was done. They found that all the information is correct. Part of what was considered in the ranking is how the University Farm partners with local businesses such as Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, according to DeForest. The company provides cattle to the farm where students care for and feed them until they are grown. The cattle are fed by the byproducts of brewing beer. They eat the spent hops and yeast along with the usual grains and hay. When the cattle weigh enough they are taken
Graduation rates surge, campus diversifies However the gap between these
Gabriel Sandoval
groups closed by 1 percent.
Staff Writer
The data also shows that in the
Alicia Brogden/The Orion
“We need a guide to help trans students navigate Chico State because it’s a hostile environment,” he said. This semester, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion hopes to take a closer look at the issues affecting the LGBT communities on campus. Tray Robinson, Office of Diversity and Inclusion director, personally filed the form for Chico State’s Campus Pride Index and was given recommendations for improvements on campus. “We’re fortunate that we have an administration that is supportive of LGBTQ issues,” Robinson said. “That’s not the case at many other campuses.” In an effort to increase its score, Chico State is implementing more LGBT resources on campus and improving the ones already in place.
Gender-inclusive bathrooms “Imagine being a community that needs a how-to guide to navigate
» please see FARM | A8
» please see LGBT | A3
vices, offices and efforts are now
concerns and discuss ways to im-
taking place in a more energetic
prove graduation rates.
and positive way,” he said.
Back in 2002, one in three minor-
A notable spike in graduation
ity students graduated within six
rates emerged in 2009 when Chico
years. From 2003 to 2009, the gradua-
State began a project prompted by
tion rates of those students steadily
the Chancellor’s Office called the
improved as their population snow-
students has more than doubled in
Graduation Initiative. The idea was
balled. In 2010 the rate surged by 8.3
the last decade, going from 518 in
to improve graduation rates.
percent, elevating it to 51.2 percent.
2006 to 1,330 in 2014.
“Part of what started happening
The spike was unprecedented.
Two years ago Chico State’s
last decade, the number of low-
Zingg said the achievement gap
was just even looking at the data,
“We saw a change almost imme-
achievement gap for graduation
income and minority students has
was probably wider in previous
even paying attention to it,” said
diately,” Patterson said. “You can’t
rates was nearly twice the average
dramatically increased as the grad-
years because many service depart-
Chela Patterson, Graduation Initia-
impact a graduation rate in one
institutional-level gap of colleges
uation gap between these students
ments were operating in “silos”—
tive committee member and Educa-
year, it takes four to six years. So
and universities nationwide.
and others has gradually tapered
without much communication be-
tion Opportunity Program director.
we were already, in some ways, on
off.
tween them.
Since then, committee members
a trajectory to increase graduation
The
gap
between
low-income
students who received federal Pell
It is important to note that low-
“The conversations that need to
from around campus have been
grants and other college students
income and minority students are
occur among various student ser-
meeting to analyze data, pinpoint
was 9.7 percent in 2013 while the
not synonymous, although a clear
average institutional-level gap be-
correlation exists between them.
tween these populations was 5.7 per-
This means many Pell Grant recipi-
cent, according Education Trust.
ents identify themselves as minor-
Chico State’s graduation gap was
ity students.
also wider than 66 percent of the
Chico State President Paul Zingg
1,149 public and private institutions
said strategic planning spurred the
surveyed, said Meredith Welch, re-
changes in demographics and grad-
search analyst for Education Trust.
uation rates seen today.
Graduation rates, however, have improved
cent nine years
both of these
You can’t impact a graduation rate in one year, it takes four to six years.
populations at Chico State since 2013, acthe
Office of
In-
ago,” he said. Back then, it was one of the largest in the CSU system. Zingg
Chela Patterson, Education Oppotunity Program coordinator
stitutional Research. Two
“The achievement gap was 21 per-
for
cording
years
ago, Pell Grant
said
also during
his first year as president in 2004, 11 percent
recipients had
of
incoming
a graduation rate of 49 percent.
first-year students were non-white.
This year, it was 57 percent. Mean-
This year the number skyrocketed
while non-Pell Grant recipients
to 58 percent.
went from 59 to 66 percent.
Stephanie Schmieding/The Orion
The number of Pell Grant-eligible
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